Game fixers fear as PIS tightens noose on sport in schools
By Bosco Magare, July 26, 2025A crackdown on age cheating in Kenya’s secondary school sports has kicked off in earnest, after the Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association (KSSSA) unveiled a new Player Information System (PIS) portal aimed at ending decades of manipulation and restoring credibility to school competitions.
In an exclusive interview with People Daily, Nyanza Regional Secondary Schools Sports Association (NRSSSA) Secretary General Tom Thomas Odhiambo revealed the PIS portal captures student-athletes’ details, going back to Standard 8’s Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examination bio-data.
“Since at Standard 8 level pupils do not envisage they will be athletes in any of the secondary schools’ ball games, they give true facts about themselves through the Ministry of Education’s portal known as Unique Personal Identifier (UPI),” Odhiambo explained.
Odhiambo continued: “Once the pupils join secondary schools, KSSSA officials source the students’ details from the Ministry of Education’s UPI, load them onto the PIS, and subject them to a two-tier verification process.”
“KSSSA officials then subject the students’ UPI and PIS portal details to public participation. During the exercise, students who have information about the athletes present their bio-data to corroborate or contradict UPI and PIS details,” Odhiambo further explained.
He pointed out that the second-tier verification exercise entails KSSSA officials interviewing student-athletes themselves, adding, “We ask them to provide details of their school identification card (ID), date of birth, date they reported to enrol at their school, and we also inquire about their KCPE results.”
“However, since the student-athletes’ future school games masters or coaches are not aware that KSSSA has already documented the students’ bio-data, they proceed to falsify athletes’ details, while KSSSA is able to verify participants’ information.”
Siaya County Secondary Schools Sports Association (SCSSSA) Secretary David Obiero noted, “Though implementation of KSSSA’s PIS portal is facing teething problems, in the next 2 to 3 years, the system will have restored integrity and accountability in KSSSA competitions.”
Meanwhile, the establishment of the PIS portal by KSSSA has sent shivers down the spines of culprit schools.
Maranda High School boys’ football team was disqualified from participating in SCSSSA ball games for failing to file the school athletes’ details through the KSSSA’s PIS portal.
SCSSSA secretary Obiero told Wikendi Sport, “Maranda High School’s boys’ football team was disqualified from county games for failing to register the football team in the PIS portal.”
“Maranda High School filed a case against KSSSA for disqualifying the team from SCSSSA-organised games. The school administration argued that the players are Kenyans and should not have been required to file details in KSSSA’s PIS portal.”
In neighbouring Kisii County, Sameta High School was entangled in a similar case and disqualified by the Kisii County Secondary Schools Sports Association (KCSSA) jury.
In Kisumu County, Onjiko Boys High School football team was disqualified by the county games jury for fielding ineligible players.
Kisumu Day was also disqualified in similar circumstances, with Agai Mixed Secondary School representing the county in the Nyanza regional schools’ ball games held in Kisumu City.
Elsewhere, Kakamega High School, Musingu High School and Teremi Secondary were also steeped in court and jury cases over players’ ineligibility.
Musingu was subsequently cleared by the jury, featured in the Western regional schools’ ball games, qualified for the semis against Kibabii High School and beat Ebwali Secondary 2-0 in the regional final, qualifying for the national secondary schools’ games scheduled for July 28 to August 2 in Kakamega town.